Span of Control: Concept, Types & Factors
Span of Control in Public Administration
Span of control is the term commonly used in business management and public administration. It is not a principle in itself but provides an empirical generalization based on common sense. Organizational theorists have tried to develop it as a guiding principle, but it serves only as a frame of reference. It is a controversial concept and perhaps the most discussed single concept in classical, neo-classical or modern administrative theories.
Concept of Span of Control:
The span of control plays a significant role in organizations and has implications for organizational structure, i.e. interactions between supervisors and subordinates and the decision-making process.
Subordinates that a supervisor or an administrator can personally direct are termed spans of control. The term can be defined as:
- Dimock: “Span of control is the number and range of direct, habitual communication contacts between the chief executive of an enterprise and his principal fellow officers.”
- Lois Allen: “Span of control refers to the number of people that a manager can supervise.”
- Peterson and Plowman: “Span of control refers to the maximum number of sub- ordinates which may be placed under the jurisdiction of one executive immediately superior to them.”
- Elliott Jaques has the view-point that a manager may have up to as many immediate sub-ordinates that he can know personally in the sense that he can assess personal effectiveness.
- Haimann and Scott defined the span of control as the number of subordinates who can be effectively supervised and managed.
- Longenecker defined the span of control as the number of immediate subordinates reporting to a given manager.
The span of control is the range or extent of effective control and supervision of the work done by the sub-ordinates. A general definition of the span of control can be the extent to which one person can extend his or her supervisory powers over other individuals or administrative units in an effective manner, which is termed as the span of control. A span of control is needed due to limited attention power, limited time and limited energy.
The span of control affects the efficient utilization of managers and the effective performance of their subordinates. Ideal span means the number of subordinates, which should cost less and provide more strength to the management.
Types of Span of Control:
The span of control can be of two types, i.e. wide span of control and narrow span of control.
Wide Span of Control:
A wide span of control means a manager can supervise and control effectively a large number of persons at a time. It is because a shorter span of control leads to a rise in the number of steps or levels in the vertical chain of command, which leads to tall organization. A wide span of control has features that lead to maximized communication, better supervision, better coordination, suitable for routine and easy jobs, prompt response from employees, less overhead cost of supervision and greater ability to respond to environmental changes.
A wide span of control results in an organization that has relatively few levels or steps of management, which can be termed a flat or horizontal organization. A wide span of control is suitable when people are competent, prefer low supervision and tasks are similar and standardized.
Simon pleads for a wider span of control. It is because a shorter span of control leads to a rise in the number of steps or levels in the vertical chain of command, which leads to tall organization. This makes vertical communication difficult and indirect. A wider span of control leads to maximized communication.
A Delayering Process is used to make the span of control wider. In this process, the span of control is increased, which reduces the number of managers and layers in the organization. Delayering helps improve communication from the top and saves costs.
Narrow Span of Control:
When the work and authority are divided amongst many subordinates and a manager supervises and controls a small group of people, then a narrow span of control exists. It adds more layers or levels of management and so leads to tall organization.
The main features of a narrow span of control are specialization work can be achieved; work which is complex and requires tight control and supervision, their narrow span of control is helpful; messages can be distorted; co-ordination is difficult to achieve; communication gaps can come; more overhead cost of supervision and no quick response to environmental changes.
When the span of control is narrow, then the structure of the organization is tall, and there may be ineffective, inaccurate and incomplete communication, which could lead to decreased morale, increased executive payroll and red-tapism.
Factors Affecting Span of Control:
1. Ability of Subordinates: When the subordinates are competent enough to complete the allotted work easily, the manager will not be required to give them more attention, and more subordinates can be supervised. However, if subordinates are less competent, the manager must devote more time to supervision, and the span of control will be narrow.
2. Degree of Delegation: A manager who delegates more authority in making decisions to his subordinates can supervise a greater number of subordinates and enlarge the span of control. But, if a manager has more authority in making decisions, he can supervise a small number of subordinates.
3. Capability of Supervisor: The supervisor’s qualities and qualifications affect the control span to a great extent. If the supervisor is competent enough, he can easily supervise a large number of employees and the span of control can be wider. In cases where the supervisor is new, less competent, and has less administrative ability, the span of control will be narrow.
4. Age of Organization: The span of control is wider in old organizations than in newer organizations because things get stabilized in old organizations.
5. Nature of Work: As the work is more routine, the span of control can be wide. The similarity and simplicity of functions can be tackled easily, while if work is of a complex nature, the supervisor’s span of control will be narrow. So, the nature of work determines the span of control.
6. Geographical Dispersion: If branches of a business are widely dispersed, then the manager will find it difficult to supervise each of them; as such, the span of control will be smaller. A manager can easily supervise the work of a large number of subordinates if they are located in one compact place.
7. Techniques of Supervision: Supervision Techniques such as delegation, planning, programming, the use of staff specialists, etc., help extend a manager’s span of control. The span of control can be extended where operations are directed more by goals and objectives rather than by an ever-present supervisor. Also, an administrator can broaden his span of control by using staff specialists who can provide another set of legs, eyes and ears for the executive.
8. Communication System: A well-organized and sensitive proper communication system in an organization will make a larger span of control possible than a powerful and ill-organized communication system.
9. Use of Standing Plans: It reduces the workload of managers; as a result, the span of control increases considerably.
10. Use of Communication Technology: In modern times, because of the use of automation in administration, control has widened. Further, the application of mechanization to such activities as accounting and computation work had increased the span of control.
11. Level of Management: The higher the superior is in the organizational hierarchy, the narrower the span of control. Based on empirical studies, Newman suggested that executives in higher echelons should have a span of three to seven operating subordinates, whereas the optimum range for first-line supervisors of routine activities is usually from fifteen to twenty employees.
Other factors include well-defined authority and responsibility, availability of staff services, economic restrictions, superior-subordinates relationship, degree of centralization, the financial position of the organization, clarity of plans and responsibilities, etc, which also affect the span of control.
V.A Graicunas’s Formula of Span of Attention:
In 1933, a French Management consultant described the concept of “Span of Attention”, which is related to the principle of span of control in public administration. His concept is based on the hypothesis that there is a limit to the number of things one can attend to simultaneously. He analyzed the possible number of relationships that can happen for a given span of control. Graicunas states, “As the number of subordinates increases arithmetically, the number of relationships increases almost geometrically.”
Graicunas identified three types of superior-subordinates relationships as follows:
1. Direct Single Relationships: The first and another type of relationship is a direct relationship between the superior and his subordinates, e.g. if M is superior while S1 and S2 are his subordinates, then direct single relationships will be two, i.e. (a) M with S1 and (b) M with S2.
2. Direct Group Relationships: In all possible combinations, direct group relationships arise between the superior and his work groups. e.g in a figure (a) M with S1, S2 in attendance, (b) M with S2, S3 in attendance.
3. Cross Relationships: Cross relationships arise among the subordinates under a common superior, e.g. (a) S1 with S2 and (b) S2 with S1. When a third subordinate, S3, reports to M, one additional direct relationship will be established between x and p. Group relationships will be increased to seven as S3S2, S2S3, S1S2, S2S1, S3S1S2, S2S1S3 and S1S3S2.
Along with these will be four more cross-relationships: S1S3, S2S3, S3S1, S3S2. So, there will be a total number of 18 interactions. A fourth subordinate will raise the total number of interactions to 44.
The general mathematical formula of Graicunas is as follows:
R = N[2N/2+N-1] Or R = N[2N-1 + N-1].
Where,
R– Total no. of relationships.
N– no. of subordinates reporting directly to the superior.
e.g., if the number of subordinates is 3, 4, 5, and 6, then relationships will be as:
R3 = 3[23/2+3-1] = 18
R4 = 4[24/2+4-1] = 44
R5 = 5[25/2+5-1] = 100
R6 = 6[26/2+6-1] = 222
| No. of Subordinates | No. of Relationships |
| 1 | 1 |
| 2 | 6 |
| 3 | 18 |
| 4 | 44 |
| 5 | 100 |
| 6 | 222 |
| 7 | 490 |
| 8 | 1080 |
| 9 | 2376 |
| 10 | 5210 |
Graicunas says a manager can effectively supervise 6 subordinates or 222 relationships. The number of subordinates at a higher level should be 5 or 6, while at the lower level, a number of 20 subordinates is an ideal number.
Advantages of Span of control:
Advantages of adequate span of control can be pointed out as it increases efficiency; facilitates effective supervision and control; increases goodwill; develops professional morale and team spirit; better communication and co-ordination; facilitates quick action; less labour absenteeism and turnover; develops discipline and mutual trust and superiors can concentrate on important work.